Combination seat-pack



y 25, 1965 K. H. WAKEFIELD 3,185,362

COMBINATION SEAT-PACK Filed Jan. 30, 1964 INVENTOR 5 Keane; H Wakefiz'eh M .ajmz

ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,185,362 COMBINATION SEAT-PACK Kenneth H. Wakefield, Belmont, N.H. (R0. Box 41, Lakeport N.H.) Filed Jan. 39, 1964, Ser. No. 341,381 3 (Ilaims. (Cl. 224-9) This invention is directed to an accessory type of protective apparel and relates more particularly to a form of waist-engaging garment possessing combined features of article-carrying capacity and seat-cushion means for use by sports participants, especially skiers.

In recent years the sport of skiing has achieved such a high degree of popularity that it is regarded as a major industry in many portions of the United States. This popularity has received a great deal of impetus by virtue of the various types of mechanized equipment which serve to assist the skier to the top of the slope. Most notable among these mechanized devices are the so-called T-bar and chair lift. Each of these and other related devices exhibit the undesirable features that they are always cold and frequently become wet from the snow which in turn soils and Wets the trousers of the skier as he uses a this lift equipment.

Sitting on a cold lift for prolonged periods, coupled with the possibility of the lift being wet, presents conditions which not only are uncomfortable for the skier, but which invariably result in soiling of his ski trousers. Should the skier be wearing trousers of stretchable knit fabric (oftentimes referred to as stretchees), which are relatively expensive, it is annoying to get these garments soiled because of the dry-cleaning expense involved to maintain them. In addition thereto, since these stretchee type garments are intended to be of a formfitting nature, the carrying of cigarettes, wallets, ski-wax and other personal items of use in the pockets of these trousers creates unsightly bulges which detract from the appearance thereof.

In order to obviate these objections, this invention contemplates a water repellent, waist-engaging belt-like garment which includes an extensible pack worn over the small of the wearers back and which may be selectively extended so as to function like a seat-cushion, and then retracted to the original position.

This disclosure further contemplates that the belt-like garment of this invention has an article carrying capacity for cigarettes, keys, wallets, and other personal items normally carried in trouser pockets.

It is therefore among the many objects of this invention to provide an accessory item which can be worn by sportsmen, particularly skiers, as an article-carrying belt with features of selective extensibility in portions thereof.

It is another object of this invention to provide a skier with a device which offers him protection against moisture, cold, snow, and ice when riding chair-lifts, T-bars, or engaging in other sitting positions in an unfavorable climatic environment.

It is yet a further object of this invention to provide for wearers of form-fitting ski trousers a means for carrying items of personal use without creating unsightly bulges in their form-fitting garment.

Other objects and many of the attendant advantages of this invention will be readily appreciated as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings in which,

FlGURE 1 illustrates a view of the ski-belt in its retracted or pack position on a wearer,

FIGURE 2 illustrates a View of the ski-belt of FIG- URE l in its extended or seat position, and

FIGURE 3 illustrates a perspective view of the ski-belt in a partially extended position with details of the zippered pocket.

Referring now with greater particularity to FIGURE 3, there is shown a preferred embodiment of ski-belt 10 in a partially extended position. This ski-belt is comprised of a foldable resilient seat-pack 11 adapted to be held in waist engaging relation on a wearer by an adjustable belt 12 having mutually-engaging clasps 9 at the ends thereof and conventional slip-carriers 17 which may be suitably positioned for lengthening of shortening belt 12 to fit the wearer.

As seen in this view, seat pack 11, made of a waterrepellent material such as quilted nylon, plastic, corduroy, or other suitable fabric, is adapted to be folded along horizontal lines A-A and BB which divide this seatpack into three substantially eqsal segments, a, b, and c. Snap fastening members 13a, 13b, and 14a, 14b are mounted along the corresponding opposed corner edge portions of sections a, b, and 0 so as to engage with one another, respectively, to hold seat-pack 11 in a retracted position as depicted in FIGURE 1. Though the illustrated embodiment shows snap fasteners, it is to be understood that other conventional fastening means such as buckles, tie-strings and the like may be employed which will be equally as effective for their intended use.

Referring once again to FIGURE 3, slidable closure means 15 attached to the upper edge portion of seat-pack 11 provides access to a pocket 16 having a width corresponding to the lateral extent of seat-pack 11 and a depth substantially equal to the vertical height of section a. Pocket 16, lined with a Waterproof fabric 160, is intended to be utilized as an article carrying pouch for keys, wallets, ski-wax and other items of use which a skier or other sportsman may have.

In use, a skier wearing seat-belt 10 in its retracted position and preparing to ride a chair-lift or T-bar would unsnap the bottom set of fasteners 14a, 14b first, then unsnap the top set of fasteners 13a, 1317, thereby permitting seat-pack 11 to assume the suspended position depicted in FIGURE 2. In this suspended position, seat-pack 11 may be utilized as a waterproof seat cushion thereby protecting the wearers ski-pants from getting wet and soiled.

When its use as a seat is concluded, the downwardly extended seat-pack 11 is then merely raised in a manner reverse from that by which it was lowered and the snapfasteners engaged so that the device would assume the retracted position shown in FIGURE 1.

Though the foregoing discloses the use of quilted nylon, plastic or corduroy as suitable fabrics from which to construct seat-pack 11, it is to be understood that there are other forms of construction which are equally as good and so long as the characteristics of resiliency, thermal insulation, and a water-repellant surface are maintained, such constructions will fall within the purview of this disclosure.

It should be understood, of course, that the foregoing disclosure relates to only a preferred embodiment of the invention and that numerous modifications or alterations may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

What I claim and desire to secure by United States Letters Patent is:

1. A ski-belt adapted to be worn in Waist-engaging relation by a user and comprising a resilient, water-repellant foldabie portion, a waist-engaging belt fastened to said foldable portion, a plurality of fastening means selectively positioned along the vertical edges of said foldable portion and adapted for respective engagement to form a folded pack at the small of the back of a wearer and which may be selectively extended by disengaging the aforesaid fastening means thereby to form a seat cushion, and a slidable closure means along the top edge of said portion for gaining access to the interior thereof.

2. A waist-engaging seat-pack comprising a belt portion, an extensible resilient member attached to said belt, said member having a plurality of sections foldable one against the other, said folded sectionshaving mounted on corresponding opposed faces thereof mutually engaging means for releasably holding said portions in a retracted position; one of said plurality of sections comprising a pocket, and means along one edge of said one section for access into said pocket, said extensible member in its retracted position adapted to be Worn over the small of the wearers back and which may be selectively extended by disengaging said fastening means to form a seat cushion.

3. A sportsmans protective apparel comprising: an elon ated resilient pad having a pair of opposed short edges and a pair of opposed long edges, Waist-engaging means connected to one of said short edges, slidable closure means afiixed to the aforesaid one of said short edges and so constructed and arranged therewith so as to permit access to an interior pocket of said resilient pack; a first and second pair of mutually engaging fastening means respectively located at spaced apart predetermined locations along each of the opposed long edges, a third and a fourth pair of mutually engaging fastening means respectively located at separated predetermined locations along each of said long edges of said pad on the side opposite the said first and second pair of fastening means, said fastening means adapted to be mutually engaged whereby to fold the elongated pad into a pack carried over the small of a wearers back and which may be selectively extended by disengaging said fastening means to form the elongated pad, said interior pocket being coextensive in size generally with the pad in its folded position so as to keep articles carried therein above the portion of the elongated pad actually used as. a seat cushion.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,604,658 10/26 Post 2-69.5 X 2,661,474 12/53 Tate 2-94 2,683,262 7/54 Foss 269.5 2,736,030 2/56 Moody 2-94 2,948,898 8/60 Allen 294 HUGO O. SCHULZ, Primary Examiner. 

1. A SKI-BE''T ADAPTED TO BE WORN IN WAIST-ENGAGING RELATION BY A USER AND COMPRISING A RESILIENT, WATER-REPELLANT FOLDABLE PORTION, A WAIST-ENGAGING BELT FASTENED TO SAID FOLDABLE PORTION, A PLURALITY OF FASTENING MEANS SELECTIVELY POSITIONED ALONG THE VERTICAL EDGES OF SAID FOLDABLE PORTION AND ADAPTED FOR RESPECTIVE ENGAGEMENT TO FORM A FOLDED PACK AT THE SMALL OF THE BACK OF A WEARER AND WHICH MAY BE SELECTIVELY EXTENDED BY DISENGAGING THE AFORESAID FASTENING MEANS WHEREBY TO FORM A SEAT CUSHION, AND A SLIDABLE CLOSURE MEANS ALONG THE TOP EDGE OF SAID PORTION FOR GAINING ACCESS TO THE INTERIOR THEREOF. 